Photos: Wackiest gadget design

<a href="http://www.cnet.com/2001-13601_1-0.html"><img
src="http://i.i.cbsi.com/cnwk.1d/i/rev/lwt/promos_eod/eod_ss.jpg" width="312"
height="46" border="0" alt="Living With Technology: Eye on design" /></a><br />When making tech purchases, you probably take a product's design into consideration almost as much as you do features and performance. After all, that's part of the fun, right? Having the latest and coolest-looking gear. Yet sometimes, cool can also be weird--not necessarily in a bad way, but it certainly makes you pause. Take a look at some of the weirdest-looking products that we've seen to date.

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A piece of art? A travel alarm clock? No, believe it or not, this here is a cell phone. The Bang & Olufsen Serene is certainly one of the most unique-looking mobiles we've come across. Unfortunately, form does not meet function, and the Serene is more suited to be showcased in a museum rather than carried around in your pocket.

Despite looking more like an MP3 player or plastic toy, the Nokia 7280 is actually a decent cell phone, unlike the previous B&O Serene. Sure, there's a bit of a learning curve to using the phone (doesn't it just beg the question, "Umm, how do you dial numbers with this thing?") and it won't jibe with everyone, but the 7280 "fashion phone" does offer a nice set of features and good performance.

If you wear the MyVu Personal Media Viewer, you're guaranteed to look like Geordi La Forge from Star Trek: The Next Generation and chances are good that people will call you a dork. Looks aside, this video iPod accessory creates the illusion that you're watching video on a large screen from several feet away. CNET's digital audio editor Jasmine France (pictured here) often enjoys donning weird, wearable tech, including the MyVu, and the Dada Footwear Code M/BBS MP3 shoes--OK, not really.

The Sony NW-S205F is neither a pen flashlight nor a cigar; it's actually an MP3 player, though you wouldn't think so. The NW-S205F proves once again that Sony knows what it's doing in the hardware department. The tubular gadget is actually easy to use and fitness-minded users should take a close look at this flash MP3 player.

Considering the history of Alienware (it's said that the company name was chosen because the founders were X-Files fans) and its specialization in high-performance gaming and multimedia computers, it shouldn't come as too much of a shock that the company would put out an alien-like desktop. Still, it's slightly unnerving and weird to have a green extraterrestrial staring back at you while you're playing games or working on projects.

Speaking of outer space, how about this creature? The Rain Design iWoofer for iPod is a sci-fi-looking iPod speaker system that's sure to turn heads. Frankly, it's a little scary-looking, in our opinion; let's hope it doesn't go all Frenzy (a la Transformers) on us.

Who would have thought a mouse shaped like a hockey puck would be so comfortable and easy to use? Sony, that's who. The Sony VAIO VGP-UMS50 offers an interesting spin on an everyday product that you probably don't think twice about, and it still manages to be a functional piece of tech.

The Honda Element has been on the road since 2003, but it still draws the occasional, "That's one weird-looking car." Some have called it a box on wheels (also see the Scion xB) and CNET's Car Tech editors likened it to a UPS delivery truck, but the crossover SUV does offer plenty of cargo room and plenty of tech to make it a fun-mobile.

Perhaps its because of the entertainment factor, but MP3 players have enjoyed some of the wackiest designs among tech products. After all, it's not everyday you find tech shaped like shakers, Pez dispensers, or teddy bears--weird but definitely fun.

The Callpod Chargepod is designed to unclutter the lives of gadget lovers by being a central power station for six devices. And while it does just that, we can't help but think it looks like some kind of medieval weapon.